SUBJECT: NEW ADDRESSES FOR CORRESPONDING WITH OWCP, DLHWC ON CASE-SPECIFIC MATTERS EFFECTIVE DECEMBER 2, 2013

To aid in the efficient administration of the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act ( LHWCA), and its extensions, the Director hereby notifies all parties of important changes that are effective December 2, 2013.

1. The New York City DLHWC District Office will assign OWCP case numbers to all new cases, regardless of the location of the injury or the claimant's home address. The New York City office is thus designated as the “Central Case Create” site. Unless a case number has already been assigned, you should submit the following forms to the Central Case Create site at the address listed below for creation of a new case:

2. After a case has been created, all case-specific mail should be sent to the Jacksonville DLHWC District Office at the address listed below for processing even if another district office is administering the claim. The Jacksonville office is thus designated as the “Central Mail Receipt” site. No mail for any case should be sent to any other district office. This applies to all cases in existence on December 2, 2013 and all new cases created after that date.

4. Exceptions – The following documents should NOT be submitted to the Central Case Create or Central Mail Receipt sites. Instead, please submit them to the DLHWC Chief – Branch of Financial Management, Insurance and Assessments, Washington, DC at the address specified below.

a. Checks. Checks (e.g. those submitted for deposit to the Special Fund or in response to penalties) should no longer be submitted to the District Offices; this is a change from past practice. Instead, please submit all checks to the Branch of Financial Management, which will receive and process them and notify the applicable district office accordingly. If the check is submitted in reference to a specific case, the check should contain the injured worker's name and case number. A copy of the District Office letter or the compensation order should also be submitted with the check.

b. Inquiries, forms, and other documents concerning self-insurance authorizations, insurance carrier authorizations, security deposits, and special fund assessments should continue to be addressed to the DLHWC Chief – Branch of Financial Management, Insurance and Assessments.

5. Guidelines for Submission of Documents. To facilitate efficient and timely processing, please adhere to the following guidelines when submitting documents.

a. Complete all fields on the form legibly, and include the Employer and Carrier Number, if known, on forms submitted to the Case Create Site.

b. Submit only one copy of a document or form such as an LS-202, LS-203, LS-206, LS-207, LS-208, 8(f) application or 8(i) application.

c. Reference the OWCP File Number on every page of the document.

d. Use standard sized paper (8 ½ x 11), with no extending labels or tabs to separate the document parts (such as exhibits or attachments). If a receipt or picture is small, copy it on to or tape it to letter size paper.

e. Avoid the use of colored paper and colored ink.

f. A single document should not reference multiple individuals. In order to protect Personally Identifiable Information (PII), documents cannot be included in the OWCP case file if they reference multiple individuals. Each document should reference only one injured worker.

7. For specific questions or concerns related to a claim that you wish to convey orally, including questions pertaining to the creation of a case or the receipt of a document, contact the district office administering the claim for assistance. Please do not contact the Central Case Create or Central Mail Receipt site for assistance unless the claim is being managed by the New York or Jacksonville office, respectively.

8. Any general questions concerning this Industry Notice may be directed to the DLHWC Branch of Policy, Regulation and Procedures, Washington, DC. You may also visit our website ( http://www.dol.gov/owcp/dlhwc/ ) to find a list of questions and answers related to this change.